Xiang Yu then asked Lady Yu what it was.

Pilgrim said, “When I was frightened by that Monkey King earlier today, it startled my heart’s blood. You should enter the curtains of conjugal happiness first, my Lord; I need sit on the couch here and rest for a while longer and have more green tea. [K. Another play on tea drinking.] I will come to bed when I feel less anxious in my heart.”

Xiang Yu held Pilgrim in his arms [K. This embrace was used to make amends for the insult to Lady Rākṣasī.¹ A joke! See how the author makes these two books reflect each other place after place.], saying, “How could I abandon my Lady and go to bed all by myself? If my Lady does not go to bed for a couple of hours, I would stay up for a couple of hours. If you do not go to bed the entire night, I would stay up the entire night.”

He went on. “My Lady, I had several cups too much to drink tonight, and my insides have become a World of Jumbled Rocks.² [K. The human world has been transformed into the World of Jumbled Rocks. Strange! Wonderful! Alas, in the Great Chiliocosm, which world is not a mass of jumbled rocks?] Let me recite a section of a plain tale³ both to keep you company and to give vent to my pent-up frustrations.”

“May Your Majesty relax your anger,” Pilgrim replied coquettishly, “and take your time.”

King Xiang then assumed an air of rightful indignation and told his own story, with one hand on the saber at his side and his left leg put forward: “My Lady, my Lady! I have made it—I, Xiang Yu, am a True Man. [K. Ranking himself among heroes to delight his bedfellow: his tone is so lively.] At the age of twenty, even though I had learned neither writing nor swordsmanship,⁴ I could see that the Emperor of Qin was witless. [C. Anticipating the World of the Witless.] [K. Anticipation.] I led forth eight thousand young men, accompanied by the seventy-two-year-old Fan Zeng, having set my mind on replacing the Emperor of Qin.⁵ At that time there was a Daoist necromancer in feathery robe who knew something about fate. I sent messengers to consult him several times, and he told me that the mandate of Qin had not yet expired. My Lady [K. In the midst of his busyness, he calls out to Lady Yu, wonderful! This is the “wake-up method” used by accomplished writers. Otherwise, if he just keeps rambling on, the whole thing will become a piece of dull and mechanical writing.], you tell me whether or not Qin’s mandate has expired.

“Later my power and prestige soared, and my ambition increased tremendously: that fickle child, Fate, was not able to have his way. Qin’s mandate shouldn’t have run out, but it came to an end anyway. It wasn’t fated for Chu to rise, but Chu rose up. One morning, when I had the blood-dripping head of Song Yi hung up high, the souls of all the generals and officers flew away—they stuck out their tongues, and they got weak in the knees.⁶ [K. These dramatic phrases—one after another—seem to fly off the page.] At that time, being Xiang Yu was such great fun!

“The Qin general Zhang Han came out to fight, and I engaged him. At that time, the Qin forces were still formidable. When a general galloped out from their cavalry line, I called to him, ‘Identify yourself!’ That general, seeing my dark complexion and hearing my booming voice [C. The voice of a “famous scholar.”], with a ‘thud’ went from being on top of his silver dappled horse to being on the ground under that silver dappled horse. I didn’t even bother to kill that general.

“After a while out rode another general of high rank, whose flapping red banner had clearly written on it, ‘General of the Great Qin, Zhang.’⁷ When I thought that by now Qin was reduced to such a degree that it was no longer ‘great,’ I could not help but laugh out loud right there on the battlefield. Who could have thought that when that general saw my scoffing face, it was as if his bones broke into tiny pieces. Lowering his spear and slumping over, he began wildly waving the command banner in his hand, and the bronze gong began beating the signal to retreat. All I saw was a general in gold who made sure where his own camp was and had gone galloping off toward it. [K. Here is a series of phrases that capture the action. He is talking in such an inspired way.]

“I was at that time close by the Qin camp and was worked up into a rage, so I began to rebuke Zhang Han: ‘You, petty Qin officer! You don’t dare come out yourself, and so you send out half-grown suckling children⁸ armed with pieces of firewood as weapons to be sacrificed to my saber instead!’ But my saber was telling me, ‘I don’t want to eat the blood of these underlings—I want to eat the blood of Zhang Han!’ [K. What a description!] I listened to what my saber said, and I let those lackeys go.

“My Lady [K. Another call to “my Lady.”], what do you think Zhang Han did? It was already getting late in the day [K. A line of scenic description is inserted.], but that scoundrel Zhang Han led out ten thousand of his elite troops. Without even opening his mouth to challenge me, he raised his jade-handled⁹ mountain-splitting axe and made a chop aimed directly at my head. My whole body was heated up, and the blade of my saber rang out. Among my aides was one called Gao Sanchu¹⁰ who had always had high aspirations. [K. The tone of a “famous scholar.”] He said, “Don’t kill Zhang Han; it’s better to make him surrender. We need a soldier to tend the fire in my tent. Let’s grant him the favor of filling this vacancy.’ I heeded Gao Sanchu’s words and, with a light flick of my saber, lopped off the head of the dappled horse he rode and sent him running off. By then, Zhang Han was really scared.”¹¹

“My Lord,” said Pilgrim slowly, in a low voice, “have some tea. [K. Wonderful. Another play on the drinking of tea.] There’s no hurry.” Only then did Xiang Yu rest his voice. “Boom, boom,” sounded the drum on the watchtower: it was now the second watch.¹² [K. What a wonderful break. If he had continued talking, it could not be considered writing.]

“My Lady,” Xiang Yu said, “do you want to go to sleep?”

“I still feel just as restless,” said Pilgrim.

“Since you, my Lady, don’t want to sleep,” Xiang Yu said, “I’ll just continue with my story. When it dawned the next day [K. This closely follows the sentence above: “It was already getting late in the day.”], I was still asleep in my tent marked with the tiger’s head, snoring, when I heard the shouts of ‘Long life, long life’ from a million men in the south, ‘Long life, long life’ from a million men in the north, ‘Long life, long life’ from a million men in the west, and ‘Long life, long life’ from a million men in the east. [K. One of them is obsessed with finding the First Emperor of Qin; the other simply rambles on in high spirits. Such disappointing things are so common in the world!] I turned over in bed, called over one of my attachés, and asked, ‘Could it be that the Emperor of Qin has personally led troops to fight with me? [K. A change in direction. Wonderful!] Since he is also the Son of Heaven, should I change into a new suit of armor today?’ [C. He wants to change into a new suit of armor to meet the Emperor of Qin but didn’t change into a new suit of armor to meet the feudal lords: wonderful! Leaves an aftertaste!] [K. To change into a new suit of armor: wonderful!]

“My Lady [K. Another call out to “my Lady.”], what do you think that soldier said? Kneeling by my bed curtain, his voice faltering, he said, ‘Wrong, Your Majesty. These days, why bother mentioning the word “Qin”? The eight hundred¹³ feudal lords are shouting “Long life” in front of your jade tent, Your Majesty.’ Hearing him say this, I hurriedly combed my hair, put on my helmet, washed my feet, and put on my boots. [K. So trivial as to be wonderful.] I did not bother to change into a new suit of armor [K. Didn’t change into a new suit of armor: wonderful.] but immediately transmitted my order summoning all the feudal lords to the headquarters for a consultation.

“My order was issued during the si hour (9–11 a.m.). Then the wu hour (11 a.m.–1 p.m.) came, then the wei hour (1–3 p.m.), but all I saw was that not a single feudal lord outside the gate of the headquarters had ventured to enter the gate. [K. Another change of direction, wonderful!] I was beginning to have some doubts and sent soldiers to ask the feudal lords, ‘Since you came here to have an audience with me, why didn’t you make haste to come in? Do you expect me to go out to meet you instead?’ [C. Another extraordinary thought.]

“I was still one sentence short of finishing my words, when the gate to my headquarters was flung wide open. I found the height of all the feudal nobles of the entire world was shorter by a section. [C. Extraordinary, extraordinary!] So surprised was I that I turned pale [K. See how the author works in a new change of direction with every brushstroke, completely unwilling to write straightforwardly.], thinking to myself, ‘How could all these heroes have been left with only half of their bodies?’ But when I took a careful look, it turned out that they were all walking on their knees instead of the soles of their feet, making their way up the stairs, one step at a time. To the right of my tent were several men wearing royal crowns and bejeweled robes, bowing low, and to the left of my tent were several men wearing royal crowns and bejeweled robes, bowing low.

“I was about to rebuke them: why did they fail to show up for half a day after being summoned? But my attendants reported to me, ‘Your Majesty, the moment the feudal lords below the steps received your command, they started to discuss among themselves in front of the tent. They did not dare to walk upright through the gate, or to simply bow, or to come all in a throng. The crowd deliberated about lying prostrate on the ground, but then they would be unable to move: they deliberated and discussed, became miserable and wretched, anxious and depressed, panic-stricken and confused, and concluded that if they walked on their knees, only then would they dare to come in for the audience.’ [C. The bowing at the gate is described from the mouths of the attendants. Xiang Yu really knows how to brag.]

“Hearing this explanation, I was thirty percent compassionate, and told the feudal lords to raise their heads. Who do you think dared to budge his head or shuffle his feet? All that could be heard was a reverential sound coming from the ground—not the sound of a bell, nor the sound of a drum, nor the sound of a metal flute. When I concentrated on listening to it, it turned out to be those feudal lords saying, ‘Long live Your Majesty. We dare not raise our heads.’ At that time, being Xiang Yu was such great fun!”¹⁴

Pilgrim made a “sound like flowers falling on empty stairs,” saying, “My Lord, you must be tired. Have some green bean porridge [K. Well written.], take a break, and then continue the story.” [K. Old Xiang’s vigor, which can pluck up mountains and overawe the world,¹⁵ and the false Lady Yu’s subtle and melancholy charm: these two things are indispensable in this world!] Only then did Xiang Yu pause. “Boom, boom, boom”—they heard the three drumbeats coming from the watchtower.

“It’s the third watch¹⁶ already,” said Pilgrim. [K. Another change of direction. This is because when Pilgrim hears this, he becomes all the more impatient. When the author writes how formidably belligerent Xiang Yu is, it is entirely a matter of qi (life force, might, vitality); when he writes about the feminine grace of the false Lady Yu, it is entirely a matter of qing (desire, emotion, love). When qi is tied up by qing, it is unable to extricate itself. However, this is not the qi of Xiang Yu, nor the qing of the false Lady Yu: it is entirely the qi of Pilgrim and the qing of Pilgrim. It is a case of getting oneself entangled, all because of an erroneous thought.]

Xiang Yu said, “My Lady, if the discomfort in your heart has still not improved, let me go on with my story. After this, Liu Bang, the governor of Pei, did not behave very circumspectly, which made me suffer from some petty anger that I had bottled up, but I paid no heed to him and in the end entered the Han’gu Pass.¹⁷

“At a distance of three miles, I discerned the figure of a man, obviously wearing a crown made of pearls and jade with patterns of the sun, the moon, the stars and planets, and a robe embroidered with patterns of mountains, dragons, rivers, water plants, as well as other auspicious and imperial signs. He was riding an imperial carriage decorated with the patterns of coiled dragons, with canopies of stitched phoenix feathers, the painted part in green and carved parts in dark blue (qing),¹⁸ and accompanied, left and right, by several thousand attendants, with silver seals and green ribbons, in the uniforms of high ranks or with bronze seals and purple ribbons. [K. Contrary to what is expected, he took such a careful and meticulous look.] In a snake-like line, they thronged forward in one mass in the distance. [C. Actually, it was to Emperor Gaozu¹⁹ of the Han that Ziying surrendered, not to this Old Xiang. Even so, this fact does not prevent Old Xiang from bragging and taking credit for what others had done, especially in front of his spouse.] They suddenly had a glimpse of me from a crack in the forest of pines. [C. Minute detail. Wonderful.]

“At that time, the one in the van hurriedly took off the pearl and jade crown with patterns of the sun, the moon, the stars and planets and put on a cap of hemp cloth for commoners; he took off the robe embroidered with patterns of mountains, dragons, rivers, water plants, as well as other auspicious and imperial signs, and changed into a whitish blue, or bluish white, worn-out robe; stepped off the imperial carriage decorated with the patterns of coiled dragons, canopies of stitched phoenix feathers, the painted part in green and carved parts in dark blue [K. Repetition in every sentence; wonderful.]; and joined his hands behind his back. Those with silver seals and green ribbons, in the uniforms denoting high ranks or with bronze seals and purple ribbons all changed into straw cords and belts, had their faces painted red and prostrated themselves on the ground, wishing they were able to creep thousands, tens of thousands feet down into the earth. They were all dressed properly for the occasion.

“So fast was my black dappled horse [K. The black dappled horse is mentioned in passing: wonderful!], it rushed to the front with one leap. I could only hear someone calling from the side of the road, ‘Your Majesty! Your Majesty!’ I gave him a sidelong glance. He continued, ‘Your Majesty! I am Ziying, the King of Qin,²⁰ here to surrender to Your Majesty.’ In those days I was bad-tempered [K. Blaming himself, wonderful. That is how people talk to their bedfellows.], and for a brief while my hand gave strength to my saber, and like so much grass I mowed down several thousands, without regard for ruler or subject, or their ranks—I reduced them all to headless ghosts. At that time I had such great fun!²¹ I shouted, ‘Spirit of the First Emperor of Qin, had you known then that today.…’ ” [C. Conclusion without a conclusion, wonderful.] [K. Doesn’t finish what he was saying, wonderful.]

The story continues: But actually all Pilgrim could think about was the First Emperor of Qin. [K. To resume the main plot.] Suddenly hearing Xiang Yu mention him, he deliberately relaxed somewhat, saying, “My Lord, talk no more. I’m going to sleep.”

Xiang Yu, seeing Lady Yu ready to go to bed, did not dare to do otherwise, so he closed his mouth. “Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom,” the five drumbeats from the watchtower for the fifth watch²² were heard. [C. The places that describe the drumbeats of the watches of the night are wonderful; they enter the realm of the divine.] [K. Pilgrim is about to ask the whereabouts of the First Emperor of Qin, but here the author inserts another break and shift in direction: as always, he refuses to write straightforwardly. The fourth watch is skipped: wonderful. To do otherwise would be clumsy writing.]

“My Lord,” said Pilgrim, “this part of your talk took too long. The fourth watch passed without our noticing it.”

Pilgrim lay back on the couch to sleep. Xiang Yu also lay down to sleep, on the same pillow. [K. This sleep can also be considered to wash away the shame suffered by Lady Rākṣasī at the hands of Pilgrim.²³ A joke!] “My Lord,” said Pilgrim to Xiang Yu again, “I just can’t fall asleep.”

“Since you can’t fall asleep, my Lady,” said Xiang Yu, “let me tell more of my plain tale.” [C. Further Adventures on the Journey to the West is already a plain tale, and the plain tale told by Xiang Yu is nothing other than a plain tale within a plain tale.]

Pilgrim said, “Then tell your tale, but this time just don’t say those ‘faceless’ words.” [K. Counting himself as a hero, and to please his bedfellow, he tells a tale as if he had no face. This accusation is complete and thorough.]

Xiang Yu asked, “What do you mean by ‘faceless’ words?”

Pilgrim said, “To talk about the feats of others is having face; to talk about one’s own is to have no face. But I have a question for you: Where is the First Emperor of Qin now?” [C. Important.] [K. Hurried interjection.]

“Humph!” said Xiang Yu. “The First Emperor of Qin is also a real man. But there’s just one thing: others are smart men, but he is a stupid man.”

Pilgrim continued, “He annexed the six states and built the Great Wall; he must also be a wise man.”

“My Lady,” said Xiang Yu, “among men, you have to distinguish between the wisely foolish and the foolishly wise. The wisdom of the First Emperor is foolishly wise. The Lord of Primordial Beginning, seeing how extremely witless he was [K. What a good assessment.] and how unfit he was for the World of the Ancients, immediately had him sent to the World of the Witless.” [K. The World of the Witless is introduced.]

Pilgrim, hearing the words “the World of the Witless,” which seemed to be another made-up place, hurriedly asked, “How many miles is the World of the Witless from here?”

Xiang Yu replied, “It’s on the other side of the World of the Future.” [K. The World of the Future is also introduced.]

Pilgrim said, “Since there is the World of the Future in between, who could know that he is in the World of the Witless?”

“My Lady,” said Xiang Yu, “you wouldn’t know, but actually, in the Village of Fish-Fog,²⁴ there is the Jade Gate,²⁵ with a two-leaf door. Through the gate there is a hidden path leading to the World of the Future. In the World of the Future, there is another hidden path leading to the World of the Witless. [K. In the Village of Fish-Fog is the Jade Gate, inside which there is a hidden way to the World of the Future, in which there is a hidden way to the World of the Witless. Reader, think about this.] In the year before last, there was a man called Xin Zai (New Existence) and styled Layman Xin (New) [K. Also from Xiang Yu’s mouth we hear of a New Layman.], who was audacious. One day, he pushed open the Jade Gate and made straight to the World of the Witless to find his father. When he made his way back, his mustache and hair had all turned white. That New Layman made one trip just fine, but he should not have gone a second time. His mind was not at ease, so, after resting for three years, he again went out through the Jade Gate, this time to find his father-in-law. [K. To look for his father and father-in-law. Wonderful. Makes a precise mirror image of Pilgrim’s attempt to find his master. Why are the father and father-in-law of New Layman in the World of the Witless? Reader, try to guess the reason.]

“At that time, the dark-complexioned Emperor Yu the Great [K. “The dark-complexioned Emperor Yu the Great” echoes the earlier text.] flew into a towering rage and, without waiting for him to make his way back, sent someone to close the Pass of the Jade Gate and seal it shut. When New Layman was leaving the World of the Witless, he found that the Pass of the Jade Gate was tightly shut. He shouted for a whole day, but no one answered. He was not accepted in the east and was rejected in the west: it was miserable to be sandwiched in between. Fortunately, the Layman was a man of character and emotion (qing), so he has lived in the World of the Future for more than a decade, but he still has not been able to make his way home.” [C. The literary conception in the section on the New Layman is extremely broad.] [K. In the World of the Ancients there is New Layman, who looked for his father and father-in-law in the World of the Witless and who, unable to make his way back, has had to reside in the World of the Future. Reader, think about that.]

Then Pilgrim said, “My Lord, the Jade Gate is indeed an extraordinary sight. I am going to have a look tomorrow.”

“That would be easy,” said King Xiang. “It is just several steps to get from here to the Village of Fish-Fog.”

While they were talking, the rooster crowed three times, and the eight windows curtained with green gauze became as white as fish belly. [K. No painting could capture this.] Gradually the sun rose above the mountains in the east, and with the first drumbeat of the day, the world stirred. Four of Lady Yu’s attendants who had come from her own family walked past the windows, not speaking; one could only hear the sound of their footsteps. [K. Lady Yu has attendants that came with her from her own family: wonderful. Wonderful description.].

Pilgrim then called out, “Pinxiang, I want to get up.”

“She has been summoned,” one of her attendants replied from outside the windows.

After a few moments, Pinxiang entered the room. Xiang Yu helped Pilgrim up, and together they began to walk. At that point one of Lady Yu’s maids hastened in, inviting Her Ladyship to go to the Lodge of Heavenly Melodies to wash and have her hair combed.

Pilgrim was about to start off when, changing his mind, he thought to himself, “My tonsured head would fall far short of what they expect from Lady Yu’s style.” He gently pushed open two green-gauze-covered halves of a window and picked a pomegranate flower. He rolled it back and forth in his hands for some time before tossing it out onto the flowerbed. [K. Those in the entire world who intend to have a measure of feminine grace in times to come should remember this gesture firmly. The pomegranate flower also echoes the peony in the previous text and anticipates the mention of the fifth month in chapter 15.]

Pilgrim turned and walked away. He reached the Lodge of Heavenly Melodies in no time. [K. All the lavish description (below) is to enhance the word qing (desire).] On an elongated desk with a finely polished marble top was a lacquer box with silver inlay, containing exotic fragrant powder from the Palace of the Moon. On the right side of the silver box was a purple-colored cup of glazed glass, containing Waves of Peach Flowers rouge face cream. By the left of the silver box was laid a jar with purple floral patterns, with a sash to tie the hair. There was also an elegant pot containing black mascara. To the east were one large-size comb and three small-size combs, to be used after applying hair oil. To the west were a set of emerald-colored hair-oil combs, five medium-size emerald-colored hair-oil combs, and five small-size emerald-colored hair-oil combs. To the southwest were four large-size rhinoceros horn hair-oil combs with nine streaks as well as four small-size red stone combs. To the northeast was an elegant flask of ice-like jade, containing honey water perfumed with one hundred fragrances, and a wine container of ancient bronze with cloud motifs and hundreds of studs, filled with a liquid concoction (made from alcohol)²⁶ as nail polish to six or seven tenths of its capacity. To the northwest was a square basin with pierced jadework containing clear water, in which there were several exotic stones, upon which lay horizontally a small coir brush with a bamboo handle. To the south were four black soft brushes and ten small black soft brushes, and six soft brushes made of human hair. Behind the brushes of human hair was one half-water, half-oil comb and two ivory square-shaped combs. There was a pair of gold tweezers, a pair of scissors with jade inlaid, a razor for scraping away fine facial hair, a cup of fresh and fragrant rose syrup, a glass of green bean powder for washing the hands, and a cup of emerald-colored scented oil, all laid by the side of an ancient bronze mirror.²⁷

When Pilgrim saw the mirror, he took a hasty and furtive look [K. This echoes his looking into the mirror at the Gallery of a Million Mirrors in chapter 4.] to see how he would compare with the real Lady Yu. His image in the mirror turned out to be more graceful and attractive. [C. A mirror within a mirror.] At that time the maids-in-waiting thronged around Pilgrim, some helping with his coiffure, some helping him change clothes.

As soon as the morning adornment was complete, they saw Xiang Yu bound into the lodge [K. The word “bound” is splendid, it portrays how excited someone attempting to please his wife can be.], calling loudly, “My Lady, let us go to the Jade Gate.”

Pilgrim was overjoyed. Xiang Yu ordered a sedan chair to be made ready. [K. Have a sedan chair made ready, wonderful. Portrays how excited he is.]

“But My Lord,” Pilgrim said, “you do not know what is appropriate to this extent! It is a few steps under the shade of pines and cypresses. It would be so vulgar to go by sedan chair!”

Xiang Yu then called off the sedan chair. [K. No need for a sedan chair, marvelous. This portrays how excited he is.]

They left the lodge, walking hand in hand. In no time they had reached the Pass of the Jade Gate. There were no visible seals on the two leaves of the door, and with just one push, they opened halfway.

Pilgrim thought to himself, “If I don’t leave now, what am I waiting for?” Thereupon, he slipped through the Pass of the Jade Gate. Xiang Yu, bewildered and confused, was dismayed and at a loss for words. He darted forward to grab at Pilgrim’s clothes but succeeded in grabbing nothing but thin air and fell to the ground with a thud. Taking absolutely no heed of him, Pilgrim went off on his way.

The story continues: When Pilgrim bolted through the Jade Gate, it turned out that he ended up rolling head over heels straight downward. Rolling on for several miles, all he could hear was the sound of Xiang Yu sobbing and the attendants shouting. It was only after rolling several miles farther that finally he could no longer hear them. However, the World of the Future was nowhere in evidence, no matter what he did. Pilgrim was worried in his heart and shouted out, “Aiya, aiya! It was always I, Old Monkey, who deceived others, but this time Xiang Yu tricked me into this bottomless well!” [K. Another change in direction.]

Suddenly he heard a voice beside his ear: “Great Sage, there’s no need to be so upset. By now you’ve already covered more than half of the distance. From here to the World of the Future is less that you’ve already come.”

“Elder Brother,” Pilgrim said, “where are you speaking from?”

“Great Sage,” that person said, “I am just a wall away from you.”

“If that is the case, open the door so that I can come in and have a cup of tea.” [K. This anticipates the episode of drinking tea in chapter 13.]

“This is No Man’s World,” said that person, “There is no tea to drink here.”

“Since that is No Man’s World,” said Pilgrim, “who, then, is saying ‘No Man’?”²⁸

That man said, “Great Sage, for someone who is so smart, why are you acting stupid today? I’m outside of that count; that count does not involve me!”²⁹

Pilgrim, seeing that there was no door to open, was so provoked that he rolled with all his strength and rolled all the way down to the World of the Future. [C. Not good: It’s another world!] [K. Keep this in mind, reader: this is the World of the Future.] No sooner had he got his feet solidly on the ground and taken a few steps than he found himself face-to-face with the Six Robbers from before.³⁰ [K. Abrupt.]

“Phooey! What bad luck,” Pilgrim laughed. “I’m seeing ghosts in broad daylight!”

The Six Robbers shouted, “Stop there, you pretty lady, wait until we have peeled off your garments and have taken your valuables to pay for your safe passage!”

[C. This is nothing less than a “Basic Annals of Xiang Yu.”]³¹

[K. He who could uproot hills and raise the cauldrons (Xiang Yu) is a “shadow” of the one who wrought havoc in Heaven. How could he (Pilgrim) change into Fair Lady Yu? Reader, try to guess the reason. In the description of Xiang Yu, suddenly he is as if sword drawn and crossbow cocked; suddenly he is soft of speech and beguiling in posture, but all this is in the eyes of his spouse. Truly laughable.]